It seems that everyday I am reading another post on Facebook, Twitter, etc where somebody has gotten upset at somebody else and vents their frustrations in a post. What's bad is that many of these individual say they are professing Christians. You know the kind of post I'm talking about; posts that give vague allusions and seek to promote their view of the issue they are mad about. Oh, they try to appear in a way that seems to make it OK, not posting any names, etc. You get the sense that they feel they are entitled to post all their frustrations, all their anger, and all their opinions regarding said issue. But, I wonder if they would say the same thing or act the same way if the person (s) they are ranting about where in the same room with them. In other words, would this person express themselves the same way in the person was right there in front of them. For most I dare say they would not, although I realize that some would go ahead and do it no matter the cost. The very presence of the other person would deter moist people from "venting" their anger.
So why would a person NOT vent in public with the other person present, but feels obligated to VENT across social media. I feel the reason is that we feel safe expressing our views and opinions via social media outlets. It relates back to the change in how we relate to each other as human beings. 20+ years ago, to "vent" your feelings you actually had to encounter another person. It required face to face interaction. Yes I realize that some would say people used the telephone to do it, but even with that method there was instantaneous feedback and it was only with one person at a time. Today's culture has shifted where many people have lost the sense of what is right and wrong regarding social interactions. This is the unfortunate downside of our social media culture that we live in. I am reminded of the commercial a few years back where a car company made fun of a certain individual who thought their life consisted of having one gazillion friends on Facebook instead of getting out there and doing something together. The direct result is that that many have forgotten, or never ever learned, how to interact properly with a group of people.
We see this failure or lack of interaction skills most readily in social media posts. An individual posts a RANT against someone else (although they think they are smart by not including the name of the other person), then their "friends" join in an encourage the "venting" to continue, which in turn escalates the intense wording being posted until the entire pot has gotten out of control and all kinds of things are being said that would never be said in a face to face public environment.
WOW, hey I got a bit of advice for those that keep doing this. STOP IT! If you tried to talk to another person the same way you do across Facebook or other social media and they were there with you it would probably end up with the cops being called to break up the fight. Blood would be spilled, bones might be broken, and somebody would probably end up doing time in jail. If you call yourself a Christian then may I also remind you of what God has to say about such postings...God teaches us that if we allow our anger to control us, we have sinned. When you allow you temper to flow out into your posts, it is the say as actually saying the hateful words. God has much to say about hateful speech. He knows just how damaging it can be, both for the other person and yourself. A hateful word encourages anger, which in turn quickly escalates into deeper and darker actions of sin.
Many years ago I had to learn to stop myself before I said things. The reasons is that my mind, like yourself, is sinful and can easily cause me to create havoc with those around me. With that in mind, I ask God daily to stop up my mouth, to keep me from saying hateful and damaging things. Yes, I may feel that I "deserve to say what I feel, to speak the so-called truth, but just because it can be spoken does not mean it should be! If you call yourself a Christians, your words will cause others to draw toward Jesus or they will drive them away from Jesus. A Christian that regularly "blasts" others across social media proves to the unbelievers that being a Christian is no different that not being one. Friends, we are called to be transformed by God through the Holy Spirit (see Rom. 12:1-2). This is not something that you can do, only God in and through you will this happen. My tongue has not been controlled by biting my own lip, my own ignoring of the issue, or anything else I can do. NO, it is only done because I have God living within me. It is GOD that enables me to not say or post something, even when I know it would be truthful or proper to do it.
Remember, "A hateful word stirs up wrath, but a gentle word turns smooths tempers over."
So why would a person NOT vent in public with the other person present, but feels obligated to VENT across social media. I feel the reason is that we feel safe expressing our views and opinions via social media outlets. It relates back to the change in how we relate to each other as human beings. 20+ years ago, to "vent" your feelings you actually had to encounter another person. It required face to face interaction. Yes I realize that some would say people used the telephone to do it, but even with that method there was instantaneous feedback and it was only with one person at a time. Today's culture has shifted where many people have lost the sense of what is right and wrong regarding social interactions. This is the unfortunate downside of our social media culture that we live in. I am reminded of the commercial a few years back where a car company made fun of a certain individual who thought their life consisted of having one gazillion friends on Facebook instead of getting out there and doing something together. The direct result is that that many have forgotten, or never ever learned, how to interact properly with a group of people.
We see this failure or lack of interaction skills most readily in social media posts. An individual posts a RANT against someone else (although they think they are smart by not including the name of the other person), then their "friends" join in an encourage the "venting" to continue, which in turn escalates the intense wording being posted until the entire pot has gotten out of control and all kinds of things are being said that would never be said in a face to face public environment.
WOW, hey I got a bit of advice for those that keep doing this. STOP IT! If you tried to talk to another person the same way you do across Facebook or other social media and they were there with you it would probably end up with the cops being called to break up the fight. Blood would be spilled, bones might be broken, and somebody would probably end up doing time in jail. If you call yourself a Christian then may I also remind you of what God has to say about such postings...God teaches us that if we allow our anger to control us, we have sinned. When you allow you temper to flow out into your posts, it is the say as actually saying the hateful words. God has much to say about hateful speech. He knows just how damaging it can be, both for the other person and yourself. A hateful word encourages anger, which in turn quickly escalates into deeper and darker actions of sin.
Many years ago I had to learn to stop myself before I said things. The reasons is that my mind, like yourself, is sinful and can easily cause me to create havoc with those around me. With that in mind, I ask God daily to stop up my mouth, to keep me from saying hateful and damaging things. Yes, I may feel that I "deserve to say what I feel, to speak the so-called truth, but just because it can be spoken does not mean it should be! If you call yourself a Christians, your words will cause others to draw toward Jesus or they will drive them away from Jesus. A Christian that regularly "blasts" others across social media proves to the unbelievers that being a Christian is no different that not being one. Friends, we are called to be transformed by God through the Holy Spirit (see Rom. 12:1-2). This is not something that you can do, only God in and through you will this happen. My tongue has not been controlled by biting my own lip, my own ignoring of the issue, or anything else I can do. NO, it is only done because I have God living within me. It is GOD that enables me to not say or post something, even when I know it would be truthful or proper to do it.
Remember, "A hateful word stirs up wrath, but a gentle word turns smooths tempers over."
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